Cold Case, Bones, Law & Order, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, NCIS, Criminal Minds, Silent Witness, Dexter, Monk, and Waking the Dead, who among us can say that we have not watched one or more of the a fore mentioned TV shows? and of those that have viewed them,, who will admit to not being drawn in by the nearly omniscient presence,, that has become forensic science??? amazing isn’t it?? think about it,, they can take a cotton swab,, capture a cell or two from the interior of your cheek and either positively identify you as the perpetrator,, or totally exonerate you of a crime.. absolutely a-fucking-mazing…
although evidence would suggest that forensic science has done little to curtail the rise of violent crime,, there is no question that forensic evidence,, when made proper use of in crime scene investigation,, will positively identify the perpetrator of a specific crime,, while at the same time,, it will serve to alleviate the number of innocent men and women that will be convicted of a crime that they did not commit… when properly wielded, it can be an incredible tool of justice… however…..
forensic technology has not always been as sophisticated as it is today.. time was in the not so distant past,, that although hair, blood, semen, saliva samples, etc.,, were collected as a routine part of the crime scene investigation,, they really did little more take up space in the evidence locker.. they could in most instances not prove conclusively one way or another whether the potential offender was guilty or innocent.. they sounded good in a courtroom,, but in reality,, the science was not yet perfected enough to be able to say, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the collected samples proved the guilt or innocence of the accused…
thousands of men and women have been convicted on the probability of their particular hair sample,, or blood type matched that of the alleged perpetrator.. thousands of innocent men and women are currently behind bars,, many serving life sentences,, some on death row awaiting execution,, and with all the forensic technology that is currently available,, no one is routinely collecting dna evidence from of all of those previously convicted.. no one is entering all of those samples into the national data bases.. the innocent are not being routinely exonerated,, because the dna evidence has come to light, and proven beyond a shadow of a doubt,, that they are innocent.. why not?? i think we all know the answer to that question… money..
why is every inmate that is currently housed in our nations over crowded corrections system not being swabed and their genetic profile being logged into the nations databases?? why is dna collection not a routine part of the arrest procedure?? why is no one going thru the evidence lockers and entering all of that lethal information in the national data base system so that cold cases could be solved,, electronically?? so that innocent men and women are released from unlawful imprisonments??
why would we as a nation accept the excuse that it would be to prohibitively expensive to do that?? why are we willing to allow politicians to spend multiple millions of dollars on campaigns to further their individual political careers,, and yet,, find it acceptable that monies are not available to,, incorporate a routine forensic science cataloging system,, that would serve to not only exonerate the innocent,, but bring closure to many cases currently labeled as “cold”?? why is it that multi millions of dollars are being spent on making TV shows that extol the virtues of forensic science,, and yet,, we cannot see our way clear to make it really work for us???
i think it is because very few of us has a family member or close friend that has been wrongfully convicted.. even fewer among us have been wrongfully convicted ourselves… it isn’t personal with us,, it doesn’t effect our ability to eat, and sleep, and buy the newest in connectivity… to most of us,, it isn’t real…. too many of us are under the impression,, that if they hadn’t done something wrong,, they wouldn’t be imprisoned.. too many of us are willing to wash our hands of a life that is in no way connected to our own… and i am ashamed to admit,, that until today,, i could be counted in that number…
earlier today,, i watched a documentary on the watch instantly option of my nextflix account entitled after innocence.. it profiled the cases of eight men that have been released from prison when the dna evidence was exhumed,, and presented to the courts.. these men had served more than one hundred combined years behind bars for crimes,, they did not commit.. one of them spent 23 years, in solitary confinement, on death row.. i cannot even begin to imagine the horror..
after innocence made me cry, as i could feel the sense of desperation,, disbelief, and powerlessness that must have saturated the existence of each of the exonerees they profiled..
it made me angry,, that our criminal justice system not only lays the burden of proof on the incarcerated individual and his or her, more than likely non existent legal team, to gather the evidence,, pay for the testing and go thru the slow process of being heard by our over crowded criminal justice system..
it made me think… that my tax dollars could be well spent supporting legislation that would once and for all push law enforcement to enter every single bit of forensic evidence they collect,, and/or currently have in their possession into the national data bases… as well as, paying programmers to write programs that would cause that information to interact in such a way as to electronically eliminate potentially wrongful imprisonments from continuing even one more day…
it made me aware of the fact that even as these cases come to light,, even as these innocent men and women are exonerated of the crimes,, and released from prison,, the justice system is not expunging their criminal records.. it is not in every case compensating them for the years of their lives that were stolen from them.. it is not paying them, in criminal damages, what McDonalds paid some little old lady that spilled hot coffee in her own lap….
it made me sick.. spiritually,, emotionally,, physically.. it made me want to do something.. so i am telling you.. maybe if enough of us hear about this,, if enough of us think about this,, if enough of us act on this in any way,, even if it is simply spreading the word,, someone that is in a position to know what the next logical step is,, will point us,, as a nation, in that direction…
for more information on this topic, please visit the innocence project.…
September 3rd, 2008 at 6:18 pm
And why have not the scores and scores of rapes kits have not had their evidence entered into Codex. The fricking thing would light up like a pinball machine because those punks reoffend.
Let’s catch the bad guys first. That’s where I come from.
September 3rd, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Hopefully most of the court cases from the past were settled justly. But there’s nothing worse than being falsely accused of a crime. How do you even begin to defend yourself against a lie? It is so sad to see people who have wasted away in jail for nothing.
September 3rd, 2008 at 7:27 pm
In a newspaper release that my daughter made when the Oregon State Police were able to finally close a case that had haunted a family she could only day that if this gave closure to just one family, it was worth it. She is supervisor in the Portland division of the Oregon State Police. It haunts her just as it haunts you and I. If only the resources were available to take it on. So she trying to think as Confucius did: a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
Great blog.
Thank you for your comment on my blog. I have begun to look for you and wonder if you are okay if I don’t hear from you.
How is that rat thing going?
btorris@comcast.net
b
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:59 pm
I wonder how the costings would pan out if you compared the cost of incarcerating one thousand individuals over the period of ten years with the cost of re-examining the evidence in their case using new forensic techniques. I’m sure incarcerating them would be more expensive. The penal system world wide needs an overhaul. But who’s going to be game enough to do it? Once again, you’ve got me thinking. I can really relate to your concern for people who may be falsely accused. Going to read about the innocence project now.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:41 pm
That’s such a scary thought - that technology can progress over time to reveal someone in jail as innocent.
September 4th, 2008 at 2:05 am
You make a really powerful and thought provoking point here - one that I confess hadn’t occured to me. We have a long way to go. There are certanly more people enjoying freedom because they have not been caught than there are innocents inside. I wonder this will ever change?
September 4th, 2008 at 3:23 am
paisley,
I agree with you and understand your outrage. Wrongful incarceration for any reason is intolerable. Again I agree that if more and more people worked together the immensity of the solution diminishes. What smacks me in the face though is where does this problem stand in relation to many other problems that too could be called unjust ie: povetry, hunger, lack of simple healthcare, inadequate education, child labor, breast cancer, Darfur, war, inadequate protection and relief from storm damage, medical errors, and on and on and on……
Activism for any cause you believe in is a good thing. The mountain of just causes to choose from is mind boggeling!
I glad to see you fired up.
rel
September 4th, 2008 at 3:43 am
A great posting! I love this outcry of the spirit for the welfare of others! We seem to find magic solutions to problems, but something seems to be missing between the thought and the action! There always seems to be avoidance reasons along the way!
I’m with Rel too on other problems. I am very involved with teenagers and my heart breaks when I see teenagers struggling with discordant household environments, often taking on parental responsibilities and studying. Once that seemed liked a rare occurrence. But now, I ‘m just seeing far too much. Rather than just jump up and down, even if I can help one teenager, then that one is worth saving from the mire. Perhaps if we try to focus on individual injustices? That, for me, is my only power/way of making a difference.
Maybe a bit of a confused response, but my feelings on this are a bit mixed.
September 4th, 2008 at 7:09 am
I remember learning in grammar school, way back when, that in order to be considered guilty of a crime that they had to prove you did it beyond all reasonable doubt. Its perplexing how there can be no doubt about a crime and yet have it turn out otherwise 10, 20, or 30 years down the road. Somethings wrong if people are certain of guilt when it isn’t actually so. My current partner has a real soft spot for those falsely accused, so I rarely get to watch those documentaries because they make her so angry. The ones that bother us the most are the eye witness testimonies. I saw one in which a woman had a fight with her husband and was attacked later that night. She was so convinced he did it she testified to the fact that she saw him do it and he went to prison for it. Sure enough, somewhere down the line they proved the DNA wasn’t his and caught the real guy. I saw quite a few with eye witness testimonies that they recognized someone and where convinced of their guilt, even when the DNA matches others and they confess to it. One of the worst parts of it all is that they all had such a hard time getting new cases and having the evidence reviewed. I think its a lot more common than people would like to thing… I’m seeing more and more stories on the news and in the papers on DNA exonerating people.
September 4th, 2008 at 8:51 am
I agree with you on this one! It’s ridiculous…money….always is
September 4th, 2008 at 9:34 am
I cant even fathom being on death row for one second for a crime I did not commit. How awful!
September 4th, 2008 at 11:46 am
What a great post. I agree with you. It seems that with all the technology we have, we could help free innocent prisoners and put more guilty men behind bars. Doesn’t seem like most ppl are too concerned with the criminal justice system, though.
September 4th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
I can’t imagine being incarcerated for years for something I’m innocent of; but, like you, I have not thought much about it because it has never effected me personally. What a humanistic, spirit saving, life saving, project to endorse! Thanks for the spreading the word and taking the time to help! I’ll do the same. Perhaps we can make a difference!Peace, Light and Love . . . CordieB.
September 4th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
Maybe it’s not true, but I can’t help notice that the wrongly convicted folks shown on the website were mostly black, if not all of them. I’m just saying. Politics play a big role on this, I’m almost sure.
September 4th, 2008 at 11:03 pm
This is such an important post Paisley. I hope that many people will read this and feel compelled to do something about this state of affairs. It should be a priority for our elected officials, but is it?
In Canada, the case of David Milgaard was front and center for many,many years due in large part to his mother’s (Joyce) complete (and completely justified)belief in David’s innocence from the beginning. DNA evidence finally cleared him and led to his release. I corresponded with Joyce a few times and her love and devotion to her son was so touching and evident in her words and her actions to assist him. But how many people in prison are fortunate to have someone with that kind of perserverance to help them when they can no longer help themselves?
This is a tragedy that could happen to any of us or to someone we love. It is not something that only happens to ‘other people.
Thanks for writing this and sharing this message. G
September 5th, 2008 at 6:00 am
Its always about money, the root of everything, reducing cost, saving money. All so wrong, since when is it right to trade humanity on the stock exchange of life? The innocent suffer as no one cares, no one wants to know. We always over complicate life and unjust unfair behaviour seems to win every time.
September 5th, 2008 at 6:59 am
I have long been a advocate of abandoning, or severly limiting, eye witnesses as a means of proof of an individual’s guilt. I wonder how many innocent people spent time in prison, or have been executed, because someone falsely identified them.
September 5th, 2008 at 8:13 am
Recklessly convictions someone or allowing an innocent person to remain in jail is one of the foulest crimes I can imagine, because it cloaks the deed in law and authority. Yet, it’s a crime which is never punished.
September 5th, 2008 at 9:07 am
There is another side to this question. When you see government data being stolen and potentilally misused as is happening in the UK and to a lesser extent in other countries at the moment, then I’m not sure I want big dna data banks to include my information. It’s kind of frightening. If ever I’m accused of a crime, then they can take my database then to prove my innocence.
September 5th, 2008 at 11:55 am
As usual, a thought-provoking post.
I agree that it seems mainly blacks are falsely imprisioned…what can we do about that…plenty. DNA evidence should be mandatory to put a man(or woman) on death row for execution.
September 5th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
to collect dna would be facist
and until they can prove folks actually did the crime
slave master like
fokks getting out on dna now
if they were swabbed, could u guarantee the gov would destroy it
nope